Customer Reviews

What Bothers Me Most about Christianity: Honest Reflections from an Open-Minded Christ Follower

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Ed Gungor is a lead pastor of a church in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The book seems to be written on the junior-senior high school student level; there are lots of pop culture references and on one occasion Gungor even address the reader as Dude. He also mentions several times how "cool" faith is.

He begins with the reason God intentionally hides. "Maybe this conspiracy of hiddenness is like the hide-and-seek game children play." He then compares God to Goldilocks, leaving clues to his presence. He goes on to say that all famous atheists had difficult relationships with their fathers or their fathers abandoned them or died when they were young. Gungor then tells us that believing in God is similar to believing that the British graffiti artist Banksky exists.

As to the question of why there is evil in the world, there is no answer. You must simply trust that everything will work out according to plan. We are then told that the gospel is a "kind of decoder ring" to help people understand. He suggests that "the job of Jesus followers would be to hunt for the activity of God in the lives of others (that would add some mystery and suspense to faith -- like being spies for God!)."

As for the faith vs. science problem: "people saw no conflict between faith and science, at least not until the second half of the nineteenth century." "Science is a subversive activity. Scientists must go into the lab with an open mind." And it was the professional scientists who created the conflict as they struggled for social acceptance.

Gungor explains why the God of the Old Testament seems so war-like. He was fighting evil "toe-to-toe in the boxing ring". This also explains why God destroyed so many people in the Old Testament (even though he didn't want to): he had to destroy the people who were committing evil in order to destroy the evil. (During the Vietnam war there was a saying: we had to destroy the village in order to save the village.)

Misinterpretations of the Bible are likened to the distortions you experience when wearing BluBlocker sunglasses and Christian life is like Bilbo Baggins' quest.

I really cannot recommend this book as a serious discussion of the difficult questions that may bother believers or those who hold other beliefs.

This book was very disappointing. The author's positions and arguments lack real depth, and in some cases seem to be based on nothing more than personal opinion. At times, his opinions (I quote Gungor's words below) reflect the arrogance of some Christians that he speaks against:

"Their stories (religions other than Christian) reinterpret real God events into false stories. Hence, the true God remains unknown to them." (p84)

"The gods of other religions are not gods at all - they are worthless idols." (p93)

I followed up on some of Gungor's chapter end notes. I randomly checked a few non-biblical references from Chapter 4. Notes 5, 6, and 7 reference specific websites that, when checked, indicate "page not found".

After reading books by Christian authors such as Marcus Borg and John Shelby Spong, I find Gungor's writing to be simple-minded rather than "open-minded" as his subtitle suggests.

Ed Gungor's "What Bothers Me Most About Christianity" is a bold and thought-provoking response to 9 specific "issues" that the author has with Christianity and Christians. Some of these topics are probably things that you have allowed to rub you raw as well. Still, the answers are well thought out and documented with tact. I am thrilled to have this book in my resource library!

Some of the ideas tackled in this tome are: the thinking that God hides from us, the frustration that logical thinking doesn't readily lead to faith, the existence of evil, the fact that Jesus is the only way to heaven (this has never "bothered" me), the incompatibility of science and faith, Christians giving Christianity a bad name (Oh, yeah! A serious pet peeve of mine - especially when it's me giving Christians a bad name!), the appearance of God as a bully in the OT (I don't really think so - but it's taken my years of Bible study to get to this point), Christians misquoting scripture, the fact that there is a hell. You may not agree with what the author says, but this is certainly a thought-provoking read.

This is an interesting book that asks questions most adults are too polite to ask out loud.

But why did the author, or more likely the editor, put all the Biblical citations in the end notes instead of incorporating them in the text? This makes it much more difficult to check the Bible references Gungor uses to support his ideas. It detracts from the value of the book.

For those who feel no one is addressing the new skeptics' arguments, "What Bothers Me Most" is a great starting-point. Warm-hearted & engaging, this paperback is a heart-opening introduction to dialogue about biblical faith.

For those looking for an equally-readible (but fuller) treatment of troubling issues, follow up Gungor with Tim Keller's "The Reason For God". Both of these books reach out to the post-modern generation struggling with aspects of the Bible. The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism

I was very pleased with this book. It is open and frank about what so many people think but never say outloud for fear of looking weak or less than "faithful".
Thought provoking, entertaining and full of moments where you say "EXACTLY!"
A VERY GOOD READ.

A great book for anyone who has honest questions about Christianity, but are afraid to ask them. The author takes a thought-provoking look at nine things that bother him about Christianity, and covers them in style. A book we all need to read. It will help affirm your faith.

In my opinion this book is an excellent read and very helpful and thought provoking to both christians and non-christians alike. It covers a lot of subjects and questions that trouble many people in these times of so much choice and information. It clarifies many confusing issues about chrisitianity and deals with them in an open and honest way. It is easy to read and understand...and is devided into headed chapters....each of which covers a different topic and is complete in itself....but also part of the bigger picture....I highly recommend it....but do expect to be challenged!!!

Excellent book, very well thought out and researched. If you are looking for an honest and intellectual approach to faith and are willing to ask the questions everyone is thinking but too afraid to say, this book is for you. It will strengthen and revive your faith.

What Bothers Me Most About Christianity by Ed Gungor is a valuable addition to the growing genre of books by staunch Christians discussing the hard parts of faith. Gungor translates his conversational tone as a pastor well into the medium of writing. Each chapter could easily be a sermon that parishioners would enjoy sitting through. He tackles some of the hardest questions Christians face as first they come to faith and then again through their faith journey: Why doesn't God just show himself? Why is the Christian faith so exclusive? What does a loving God allow evil in the world? These are questions that not just Christians struggle with, but the questions that anyone who wants to understand why Christianity is a relevant faith in today's post-modern world. Gungor begins each chapter by addressing exactly why the question bothers him and what the easy answer the world wants to hear would be. Then he gets down into the hard work of pulling out Scripture to explain the questions that have haunted the faith for centuries. He answers each one believably and solidly, and while the answers may not always be easy, he is not afraid to face them and to encourage readers to face them as well. He also acknowledges that some questions just won't be answered this side of Heaven, and accepting that is a part of having faith. This well written book is a must read for anyone who wants to understand why Christians believe as we do or for Christians who still wonder just why God does some things the way He does.